Pf’s hastiness on constitutional amendments surprises me – Guy Scott

DR GUY Scott says he is failing to understand the PF’s hasty move to amend the amended Constitution.

The PF majority in parliament last week approved a private member’s motion to amend some clauses in the Constitution.
Earlier, President Edgar Lungu had directed that the Constitution should be re-amended because it brought confusion after the August 11 general elections.

One of the amendments PF wants is the reintroduction of deputy ministers.

But Scott said it is highly unacceptable for President Lungu and the PF to be thinking that they can benefit by yet again amending the Constitution amid hardships the nation was facing.

He said the PF had deceived themselves by approving constitutional amendments of things they were not conversant with.

“Why rush? What’s the rush? I don’t understand! You can’t change the Constitution without following the laid down legal process. In most countries, you can’t even change the constitution to affect your immediate situation. What we are asking is: what are these amendments? Do they really need to change them?” Dr Scott asked.

He said the PF had made a lot of mistakes by having the constitution amended in the first place against the advice and counsel of stakeholders.

“I am not a lawyer or constitutionalist but they (PF) made a lot of mistakes last time in their rush to amend the Constitution. The President cannot benefit himself by changing the Constitution, otherwise he can give himself 100 years or his people can give him 100 years for one presidential tenure,” Dr Scott said. “The grade 12 clause, for example, was just a mistake; they never told the truth and now they want to come rapidly with amendments, why? There is no general election, there is no big election coming, there are just a few local government seats.”

And Dr Scott expressed disappointment at PF members of parliament who were calling for the reintroduction of the position of deputy minister.

He said such legislators were not in parliament to represent the poor in their constituencies but for selfish gain.

“PF parliamentarians calling for the positions of deputy ministers like such moves because it means some of them have already been appointed deputy ministers. They want to be given better cars, which are paid for by the taxpayer and that is why you have got a done and dusted majority,” said Dr Scott.